but the top democrat in the senate is not going to be at work for a while. he's going to be laid up while he recovers. isn't going to be at work. senator reid get well soon. good luck with the surgery. "first look" is up next. good morning. right now, on a first look. a massive inferno wipes out hundreds as police look for the cause. pressure is building on the patriots as they investigate deflate-gate. and president obama goes back on and a weight loss miracle gets fda approval and will ferrell be well ferrell. we'll explain that. good morning, everybody. i'm betty nguyen. hundreds are homeless after a massive inferno in new jersey, it happened last night in the town of edgewater.

across the river from new york city. floors collapsing one top on the other. this was a four-story building. making matters worse, the gas was still on. now, on the ground, this is what people heard, sirens wailing as more than 300 people were evacuated. the scene was so bad that the mayor was declaring a local state of emergency. schools in fact closed today. the fire simply has people in disbelief. >> when the firefighters got nervous and started running, i knew it was worse than we thought. >> it spread like a wildfire. it's just amazing how the fire, it spread so quickly. >> no word on what sparked this fire. officials say no one died and no

major injuries. this was the site of a fire when it was still under suspicion. and the deflate-gate scandal is so big, vegas is taking bets on whether head coach bill belichick will be suspended. and they say the balls were properly checked by officials before the game. nbc's ron mott reports. >> reporter: espn citing anonymous sources, reports that the nfl found 11 game balls were underinflated. which can make the ball easier to grip especially in the rain. as was the case in sunday's victory. deflate-gate centers on whether the patriots tampered with the balls after they were tested by the referees. >> it's possible that the curtain was pulled back on things that go on behind the

scenes that no one was really aware about. >> reporter: they are to be checked and marked with the ref's signature. and then they are given to ball runners where they remain. so how could this happen? in just seconds, they could insert a needle like this and release pressure, some say, to gain an edge, even if it's barely noticeable. nfl rules don't govern access to footballs during the game. but stipulate that if any individual alters a ball, they face possible disciplinary action. >> and i think a possible suspension for the coach depending on what kind of proof or chain of custody they have for these footballs. >> they play good ball, why would they do this? >> they're cheaters. and they should pay for it. >> reporter: the patriots and belichick were fined for

spygate in 2007. and the head coach says he didn't know anything about the ball controversy until the day after. >> coach belichick said that he didn't know anything about the ball controversy until the morning after. now to new developments in the michael brown shooting case. it's been two months since a missouri grand jury declined to indict former police officer darren wilson in the shooting death of the unarmed teen. now, the federal government is heading in the same direction. the justice department is not expected to recommend charges against the police officer. and the times is also reporting that attorney general eric holder declined requests by officials alongside prosecutor mccallau that way it wouldn't seem as though they reached their decision together. holder is expected to make a official comment before he

leaves office. his successor's hearing begins next week. the attorney for the brown family released this statement saying, quote, they will wait for official word from the justice department, too, on whether or not they will face any charges on the police officer. the family could still file civil charges. in florida, a trip for walmart for coffee creamer, it ends in a chokeholder. this is michael foster. he thought he was doing something good, but instead got arrested. he saw a man with a concealed holster coming into a store and cameras caught foster tackling the guy. the problem is he had a permit to carry a concealed weapon. foster is now facing a battery charge. president obama is on the move, with a stop in kansas. yesterday, he visited boise

state in idaho. he talked his proposals, such as free community college initiatives. # tracy, it seems like both republicans and democrats are really trying to win support with competing visions on the future. >> reporter: congress is here dealing with terror to abortion. the president is hitting another red state, kansas, to push his agenda. as president pitches what he calls "middle class economics" those in congress are moving toward a vote on the keystone pipeline. there's a vote today to prohibit federal funding on the anniversary of roe versus wade.

lifting the trade embargo with cuba is on the back burner as high-level talks begin in havana today. >> we need to move on and the united states needs to move on. >> reporter: the tone in washington that could threaten progress. >> they got to be specific. they just can't be no. >> he owes it to the american people to work with the representatives they elected. >> reporter: now a new controversy. house speaker john boehner invited israeli prime minister without clearing that with congress. >> i don't believe that i'm poking anyone in the eye. >> reporter: they're trying to fast-track sanctions against iran. we talked about a lot of issues here. what about immigration, there are still lawmakers on capitol hill talking about it.

betty, the chance of a comprehensive reform happening in this congress, it doesn't seem like it's going to make the light of day. thank you, tracy. let's get down to business. good morning to you. >> betty, good morning to you. i did not get the yellow memo. >> that's all right. american express is cutting 6% of its work force as it continues to rein in cost. offset by hiring in other parts of the company and ebay is cutting jobs as well it's cutting 2400 jobs as it gets set to spin off its paypal business. google is getting set to sell mobile phone plans directly to customers. the service is expected to be launched later this year. microsoft goes virtual.

a visor that can project 3-d images. explore the surface of mars. it will be available this fall. betty, back over to you. >> thank you. let's get to the latest in sports from our biggest in-house sports fan, you know who i'm talking about, the one and only frances rivera. >> let's talk about the australian open. top seed novak djokovic reaches the third round at melbourne park for the ninth consecutive year, he defeated andrei kuznetsov in straight sets and john isner moves off after winning in four sets. on the women's side both venus and serena williams have advanced to the fourth round. in just one year the nba franchise values rose a whopping 72%.

last year only three teams were worth more than $1 billion, knicks lakers and bulls, this year those three teams are worth at least $2 billion and eight more teams are worth more than $1 billion. the purchase of the clippers influenced the big boost there, including a 78% growth for the clippers. >> what a difference a year makes. super bowl add front-runner. victoria's secret has released a minute-long add -- >> fully clothed. >> you'll have to wait until february 1st for the end. how about this one, ouch to this. that's, right there, will ferrell at a pelicans game where he pummels a cheerleader. before you think the actor has gone crazy, this is for his upcoming film. he's working alongside mark wahlberg in the upcoming comedy.

>> hopefully, they used a stunt double for that cheerleader. thank you, frances. today's the annual march for life in washington. 1973 decision on roe v wade. house republicans decided to scrap their plan of an anti-abortion bill. can't say thank you enough. you have made my life special by being apart of it. (everyone) cheers! glad you made it buddy. thanks for inviting me. thanks again my friends. for everything for all your help.

through all life's milestones our trusted advisors are with you every step of the way. congratulations! thanks for helping me plan for my retirement. you should come celebrate with us. i'd be honored. plan for your goals with advisors you know and trust. so you can celebrate today and feel confident about tomorrow. chase. so you can. does a freshly printed presentation fill you with optimism? then you might be gearcentric. right now, get this case of paper for only $24.99 and save even more after rewards. office depot & officemax. gear up for great.

welcome back. let's talk winter storm, one of the first ones of the season that's going to go from the west to the east affecting a lot of people. we're starting this morning with snow in texas. oklahoma city, a little later today as the colder air moves in. the storm, right now, is located over texas and oklahoma. friday it dips into the southeast. on saturday, as it heads up the coast, it goes into cool air, notice that i didn't say cold

air, the key to the forecast. the nor easter really blows up saturday afternoon to saturday evening. by sunday morning, it's a huge storm in the gulf of maine. computer models aren't forecasting heavy snow. maybe some 3 to 6 inches in new england. we don't have a lot of cold air in place the storm is moving fast, it's not going to throw a lot of that snow back. the best chances for accumulating snows, west virginia and also areas of eastern new england. 3 to 6 inches from boston to new york city. a snowstorm but not like -- >> a mild nor easter. >> not enough to cancel your saturday plans at this point the white house is not too happy after hearing speaker john boehner invited israeli prime minister to speak before congress. the news came just days after

the president would veto sanction sanction. and in an interview with billboard, malcolm-jamal warner said, it's painful to watch my mentor go through this. i can't really speak on any of the allegations because obviously i was not there. the bill cosby i know has been great to me and great for a lot of people. well former tonight show host jay leno is also addressing the controversy. >> i think this whole cosby thing -- stand-up comedian. he made a flat-out statement that reverberated around the world. if it was on any other medium, it would have been edited, and now you're getting your news raw and unfiltered, which i think is fantastic. i mean i don't know why it's so hard to believe women.

you go to saudi arabia you need two women to testify against a man and here you need 25. >> bill cosby has never been charged with a crime, and through his attorneys has denied all allegations. and these puppies were found tied up in a garbage bag by a couple on their walk. they're only 5 weeks old. it is unclear how long they were in that trash can. the fda has approved this weight loss device. listen to it it's called the maestro system. the pacemaker-like device is implemented into your abdomen. you need it have a body mass index approach and one other obesity related condition. hillary does her best vladimir putin imitation.

you got to see that. scrambled politics is next. even before she got 3% back on gas all with no hoops to jump through. katie used her bankamericard cash rewards credit card to stay warm and toasty during the heat of competition. that's the comfort of rewarding connections. apply online or at a bank of america near you.

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democrats in 2016. senator elizabeth warren has always pushed for the working and the middle class. now, after the president obama highlighted the same issue in his state of the union address, these two will be the ones to watch in 2016. the boss's daughter jessica springsteen is head to head with governor chris christie in a battle to put an end of puppy mills. she asked him to sign legislation to combat large breeder breeders. in the meantime, new from forbes tennessee governor is the rich egs elected official in the u.s. his net worth is estimated at $2 million. -- $2 billion. the congressman is working on a triology about his life during the civil rights movement. former secretary of state hillary clinton did her best vladimir putin impression.

>> you can imagine the conversation with putin, he was prime minister after his president. one day, vladimir you think you'd like to be president again. i think so. why don't we announce it. excellent idea. >> the accent i tell you, after reading a dr. seuss book to a group of school children yesterday, first lady michelle obama started showing off moves. she told the kids to get on their feet and show me what you got. that's your morning dish of scrambled politics. i'm joined by billob franken. >> good morning. i don't think hillary should quit her day job, whatever that is. >> it sounded a little bit like bill clinton that accent. >> neither of them are probably

going to make a career out of impressionists. >> as we mentioned earlier today, the white house is not happening, speaker boehner invited the israeli prime minister to speak before congress, what is the power play here? >> the question is is congress -- first of all, congress probably has the legal authority to do that. but is congress exceeding its normal bounds by by passing the head of state of this country, which is president obama. are they undermining u.s. policy or are they feeling so strongly about this they have to go beyond the president's policyies and invite the head of state, is netanyahu violating protocol with the sitting president of the united states.

>> last night, house republicans decided to just scrape their plans to consider a controversy anti-abortion bill today, how reunited are the republicans right now. >> the republicans by all accounts aren't all that united they still have the factions. this was an issue unique to the women's movement. had to do with all stringent the antiabortion requirements should be. many republican women were saying far too stringent and ultimately the leadership decided to pull the bill to avoid embarrassment. >> bob, as always we appreciate you weighing in on all of these topics. thank you. >> thank you. the envelope that self-destructs in just 24 hours. push your enterprise and you can move the world. ♪ ♪

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27 minutes past the hour a look at today's headline. leading the news in the miami harold, navy relieved guantanamo base commander due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command. ncis is investigating. there are looking into maybe an alleged affair and the recent death of her husband. james patterson's box are known as action thrillers. this could be much. in a pure marketing stunt for $294,000 readers will get a special edition of the book that only gives them 24 hours to read it before it self-destructs. >> genius. >> the book will explode 24 hours after opening. the special edition comes with

its own bomb squad. >> his books are long too, if you even -- >> you better open that thing and not move right? >> speed read. >> i'm betty nguyen and this is "first look" on msnbc. "way too early" with thomas roberts is coming up straight ahead. ♪ good news people. wait, wait. did he just wink? let's see that again in slow motion. [ cheers and applause ] what. wait a second. hold on a second. doesn't he realize he lost an historic election. even his own party was deserting it.

he doesn't give him [ bleep ]. >> what's in a wink. he know takes his message straight to the road. meanwhile, house speaker boehner calls the president's bluff when it comes to new sanctions over iran's nuclear program, more on the decision that the house speaker says congress can make its own. what will the internet giant google have better luck when it taps into the phone business. this is "way too early." ♪ welcome to miami ♪ ♪ ♪ hi everybody. i'm thomas roberts. we're in miami. it's thursday january 22nd. welcome to "way too early."